TITLE: “He Bought Us Back”

In the name of the Father and of the † Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Our text for tonight is the Passion of our Lord where He is betrayed into the hands of sinners, as well as the story of Ruth.

Ruth was a faithful wife to her Israelite husband, Mahlon. But he was dead. So was Chilion her brother-in-law, and her father-in-law Elimelech. All that was left was her and Naomi and Orpah. They were in the land of Moab, far from Naomi’s home. They had no one to care for them, the family line looked as though it was dead, and the future looked bleak at best. Naomi told her two daughters-in-law to stay in Moab their home. Orpah listened to her, but Ruth did not. Ruth loved Naomi as her own mother, and knew that in order for her to live, she had to help take care of her.

But Ruth was alone. A foreigner, a widow at a young age, with no blood family to speak of, Ruth trusted that the Lord would provide for her, as she sought to provide for and take care of Naomi.
Ruth was redeemed by a man named Boaz. He loved her as his own flesh and blood, and so offered to marry her, so that their children would receive the inheritance of her first husband. It sounds confusing, but in reality it is a beautiful sign of love. Boaz gave up his own inheritance so that her children would have theirs.

But this isn’t finally about Ruth or Boaz, their son, Obed, or their grandson, King David. It’s about Jesus. He is the one, after all, who is betrayed into the hands of sinners with a kiss. He is the one who takes a bride and redeems her from sin, death and the devil. He is the one who buys back His beloved, the Church, from the clutches of the evil one. He did not do this with gold or silver, but with His holy precious blood, and with His innocent suffering and death.
Jesus is your redeemer. He has loved you with an everlasting love. He has bought you back by paying the price for your sin. He was betrayed into the hands of violent men, so that you would not suffer what you deserve for all eternity. The kiss of Judas could have been the seal of your death, but instead, it is your life that you receive.

We can hardly fathom such love, anymore than we can fathom the love of Boaz for Ruth or Ruth for Naomi. But we don’t have to understand this great love. We only receive it, and praise God for the mighty gifts that He continues to shower down upon us this day.

Be at peace. You have been bought with a price, and you are now free. In Jesus’ name. Amen.